Page 107 of The Marriage Narrative
In the video, Sadie was on a set, sitting in a chair in an all-white room getting her makeup touched up while talking and laughing with the crew. Seeing his sister in her element always made him so proud. He didn’t agree with 99.99 percent of her life choices, but there’d never be a time when he didn’t look up to his larger-than-life big sister.
“All right, let’s do this.”She clapped her hands twice. The video quality changed from candid to cinematic for her close-up.“That’s better. Dearly beloved, we’re gathered here tonight to celebrate the twentieth birthday of my current favorite set of twins. Wylie. Lulie. I love you. I’m proud of you. And thank you for agreeing to share your special day with me. Because tonight, we are also gathered here to officially release the trailer forZaffre Hoursseason ten.”
“It’s tonight?” Zinnia’s voice hit an octave he’d never heard before. “Will it be online? Someone might show my parents before I get to—”
“Regretfully, I’m unable to be there tonight, but I’m there in spirit. I’m not dead. Just saying goodbye.”
Shocked gasps rippled through the crowd. His sister just hard launched her retirement like it was nothing.
“Each season ofZaffre Hourshas been filled with pivotal moments curated from my life. It’s a public diary of my own consented creation. I’ve been blessed that my family, near unanimously, agreed to travel with me on this journey. They trusted and supported me as I executed my experimental vision.
“Season ten, while different in scope, will be just as special. In it, you will bearwitness to the usual pranks and shenanigans, become reacquainted with an old fan favorite, be given a definitive answer to a decade-old conspiracy theory, and meet a stranger who will charm you, one sweetheart smile at a time. That was the beauty ofZaffre Hours—it was and will always be so much greater than one person.
“All good things eventually come to an end, but before that happens, we must go back to the beginning.”
A dramatically remixed version of theZaffre Hourstheme song played as the trailer began withBeatrix.
Jordan almost choked on air.
It was an endless parade of clips—Bea performing on a theater stage, rehearsing in a studio, dancing in her movie set trailer, drinking wine and eating popcorn while in bed…and the crowd was enjoying every second. She was a fan favorite all right. He’d clearly underestimated how much.
“People know that me and Sadie are close, but they don’t know how close. Still, I never thought I’d come back toZaffre Hoursafter I left. Hindsight is twenty-twenty and I know now I never should’ve done it. I’m living the life I was always meant to, but there would’ve been different paths to get me here. No one knows the real story. What it cost me to jump-start my career. Who I had to give up.”
The video smash cut to Beatrix riding in the back seat of an SUV and screaming into a phone.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE GOT MARRIED?”
“Jordan,” Zinnia whispered. “Did you know she was filming for the show?”
He’d assumed they’d cancelled her appearance.
The screen filled with images of them as teens, candid pictures he hadn’t seen in years—football games, family Christmas in matching pj’s, going on their first drive when he got his license, prom, graduation…
He was notat allready to see his face on a screen that large.
“My name is Alfie Jordan Zaffre and ten years ago, I went into hiding.”
[Off-screen Producer]“Why?”
“Have you even seen the show? I wasn’t doing any of that shit.”
[Off-screen Producer]“But you’re here now.”
“Yeah, and with a fully developed frontal lobe. Think about it: Sadie is a menace on her own. The both of us? Together? Back then? This show would’ve gotten cancelled expeditiously. Besides, me not being here allowed her to turn this into the juggernaut it is today.”
The trailer continued incorporating clips from his family—pranks as promised, international travels, Lulie’s first acting gig,the twins filming dance challenges—and then it took a serious turn with news footage from the mall incident with a promise to reveal everything that happened that day. Lulie’s voice-over echoed through the club:
“It’s still really hard to talk about. If it wasn’t for Zinnia…”
The screen cut to black for one second, two, then three, before fading to a clear shot of the sky and panning down to the pocket forest. Zinnia was sitting on the bench, working on her tablet, and then in the interview seat.
“My name’s Zinnia. Hi.”
[Off-screen Producer]“And how long have you known Alfie?”
“Including today? Seventeen.”
[Off-screen Producer]“Months?”
